Animal Control to Enforce Animal Protection Ordinances

SEAVILLE – Shore Animal Control Services is advising the public in the municipalities they currently serve in Cape May County that there are revised animal welfare protection ordinances that have been recently enacted. The animal control officers will be patrolling and enforcing these ordinances, especially during these extreme weather temperatures.
Upper Township and Dennis Township enacted laws last year to protect dogs from being tethered 24/7. The following is now part of Upper Township code under section 8-5.7 titled Chaining or Tethering of Dogs.
a. Dogs must be able to move freely when chained or tethered. The size of the tether or chain must be a minimum of fifteen (15′) linear feet and shall remain tangle free. Dogs must be equipped with properly fitted harness or buckle-type collars. The tether or chain shall be constructed of lightweight, yet durable, material. A dog house must be accessible to any dog that is chained or tethered.
b. Dogs that are not spayed or neutered shall not be tethered or chained for any period of time and must be in a completely enclosed yard or housed indoors.
c. No dogs may be tethered or chained after dark (prior to sunrise or after sunset).
Based on the facts that chained or tethered dogs can become aggressive and become a public safety hazard, and dogs can be exposed to a greater risk of injury, Woodbine has taken even further steps to change their ordinances. In July of 2012, Woodbine enacted a new groundbreaking animal protection ordinance that states :
The Mayor William Pikolycky and Council for the Borough of Woodbine find it in the interest of public safety and to prevent undue injury to any dog to provide certain regulations governing the chaining of dogs within the Borough as follows:
1. Dogs that are not spayed or neutered shall not be tethered or chained for any period of time and must be in a completely enclosed yard or housed indoors.
2. No dogs can be tethered or chained after 9:00 p.m., or for a period longer than 7 hours.
3. No dogs shall be chained without access to food, shelter and water.
4. No dog shall be tethered or chained outside when temperatures are below 32 or above 90 degrees.
The Township of Dennis enacted laws that require all dog houses to have bedding and material as well as provide protection from weather and that owners provide veterinary care and immune care (vaccinations) to any animal.
Violations of these ordinances could result in prosecution for criminal animal neglect. Shore Animal Control works in conjunction with the New Jersey SPCA when cruelty is suspected.
Regular patrols of the municipalities are currently a regular routine, but animal control is asking for help from the public for animals in backyards that cannot be visible from the streets. Neighbors can report violations of these township ordinances by calling Shore Animal Control at 1 800- 351-1822 and the officers will investigate. Warnings and summons are currently being issued for all violations in the municipalities of Dennis, Upper, Woodbine and West Cape May.